Central banks to increase gold reserves over next 12 months: WGC survey

📌 Summary:

• The World Gold Council's (WGC) 2026 Central Bank Gold Reserves (CBGR) survey indicates central banks worldwide intend to accumulate more gold over the next 12 months
• Implication: gold prices are likely to stay elevated, impacting retail buyers
• Gold prices in India have risen about 40% over 12 months, driven mainly by central-bank buying and the rupee's depreciation against the U.S. dollar — the currency in which gold is internationally priced

🎯 UPSC Relevance: GS3 — foreign exchange reserves, monetary management, safe-haven assets and the balance of payments.

📝 Prelims Facts:

• The World Gold Council is the market-development body for the global gold industry (headquartered in London)
• The RBI holds gold as part of India's foreign exchange reserves
• Gold is internationally priced in U.S. dollars, so rupee depreciation raises domestic gold prices

🔑 Key Term: Central Bank Gold Reserves — gold held by a central bank within national reserves to diversify assets and hedge against currency and inflation risk.